Pretty In Pearls

THE PARTY Patrons of the arts who share an obsession with Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer gathered at the de Young in Golden Gate Park to view one of his most famed paintings at the opening of Girl With a Pearl Earring: Dutch Paintings From the Mauritshuis. THE PLAYERS Dede Wilsey, His Excellency Rudolf Bekink, Madame Gabriella Bekink, Emilie Gordenker, Victor J. E. Moussault, Yurie and Carl Pascarella, Lonna Wais, Erin Glenn, Susan Crocker, Lucinda Crocker THE HIGHLIGHTS Partygoers clad in black tie vied for a look at works from the Dutch Golden Age including the elegant Vermeer masterpiece that sparked both a novel and movie in recent years. The hostess, Wilsey, dressed in a voluminous Oscar de la Renta, presided over the preview of the exhibit and the dinner that followed, and introduced Mauritshuis Director Emilie Gordenker, who traveled from The Hague for the opening. In celebration of the painting’s journey to San Francisco, Ghirardelli wrapped chocolates in an image of the gazing girl with haunting eyes. Photos courtesy of Drew Altizer Photography